FoodB

Shepherd's Pie seems like an odd name for this dish once you think about it. As far as I think of shepard's from days past, they were people that lived with their flocks and would usually eat off of the land. But what do I know, it still makes for one of my favorite dishes to come from Britain (especially since it isn't either boiled or fried).

On another note, I had Mac and cheese last night and yes it was from the blue box. I commented to Jenn afterwards how that was a horrible and amazing meal all in the same sitting. Horrible because the stuff upsets my stomach. Amazing because I actually crave the stuff about once a year. I've tried making my own mac and cheese and I think that Kraft has ruined the real stuff for me. Damn you blue box!

Shepherd's Pie

2 lbs. Potatoes, such as russet, peeled and cubed
2 Tbsp Sour Cream or softened Cream Cheese
1 large Egg Yolk
1/2 cup Cream
Salt and Black Pepper
1 Tbsp Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
1 3/4 lbs. Ground Beef or Ground Lamb
1 Carrot, peeled and chopped
1 Onion, chopped
2 Tbsp Butter
2 Tbsp All-purpose Flour
1 cup Beef Stock
2 Tsp Worcestershire
1/2 cup Frozen Peas
1 Tsp Paprika
2 Tbsp chopped Fresh Parsley

1. Boil potatoes in salted water until tender, about 12 minutes. Drain potatoes and pour them into a bowl. Combine sour cream, egg yolk and cream. Add the cream mixture into potatoes and mash until potatoes are almost smooth.
2. While potatoes boil, preheat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add oil to hot pan with beef or lamb. Season meat with salt and pepper. Brown and crumble meat for 3 or 4 minutes. If you are using lamb and the pan is fatty, spoon away some of the drippings. Add chopped carrot and onion to the meat. Cook veggies with meat 5 minutes, stirring frequently. In a second small skillet over medium heat cook butter and flour together 2 minutes. Whisk in broth and Worcestershire sauce. Thicken gravy 1 minute. Add gravy to meat and vegetables. Stir in peas.
3. Preheat broiler to high. Fill a small rectangular casserole with meat and vegetable mixture. Spoon potatoes over meat evenly. Top potatoes with paprika and broil 6 to 8 inches from the heat until potatoes are evenly browned. Top casserole dish with chopped parsley and serve.

Jenn tells me that she likes to double up on the Worcestershire sauce to add more flavor to the gravy. Also she prefers to make the mashed potatoes really smooth and instead of adding sour cream or cream cheese she will just keep adding cream until she gets the smoothness the way she likes. One last note, this time around she used a small can of peas and carrots and that really cut the prep time in half and tasted just the same.

Whatever she does to it sure do be good!